Elaine
Warm wind blew my hair into tangles as i stepped inside the cozy cafe situated a little farther away from school. It was the only place where i felt like my life was normal, this sanctuary felt like breathing as none opted for an homey looking cafe with its toasty interior and old couple baked goodies to the young themed and crowded one across school.
But I know better than to present my face there just to be rewarded with welcoming words. I am no weak, defenseless lady to hurt around myself to what they say or do. I just don't care. It's simple, they are too worthless for my time, too weak to handle my past, and too judgmental to know what I have planned for my future.
Being an outcast was my own decision. No one can be trusted.
But a part of me saw something different in Alex. I saw him try, rectify and fight himself on many occasions. He was not what he tries to be, well-tried. since he now behaves like himself.
Distancing himself from me was not my reflex, at times he seemed harmless. But Karly Hart had other plans for me. Three weeks ago and an encounter in the washroom later I knew she liked him, she made it clear after her two minions held me by arms as she forcefully shoved a spoonful of peanut butter to which I am graced with powerful allergy call and a bold IDIOT printed on my forehead with permanent marker gave me the ultimatum.
I Skipped the rest of the day and wasted my precious time trying to remove the ink, blowing my nose, and scratching myself. Not the best of experience.
By the time I went to babysit Ashley, I knew how to get him off my life.
I Rubbed both my hand as a warm plate of waffles was deposited in front of me. Strawberries and whipped cream.
Two bites later Noah joined me.
"H-how do you eat st-strawberries with all that crea-am, It's sick-k-ening" he says taking a sip out of his black coffee.
"Not many are fans of that dark thing you drink that resembles your soul, but do you see me judging you?" I snap.
He raises his hands in surrender and gives me a what's gotten into you look?
"Diana wants me to attend the therapy" I sink into my seat sighing.
"N-n-nightmares?" I nod.
This time he sighs. "You need to have a so-social life, y-you probably should forget a-about what happened b-back then. It's time you move on"
The way he looked at me gave me chills, it was like for once he knows that he's right, which to happen was a rarity.
And he still barely knows anything about me. Best friend for the sake of not dying all alone.
So selfish.
"N-Nathan was asking about you, I kindly asked him to p-piss off" he said smirking while stirring the drink with a spoon.
Bearing a friend always comes with a package, so Noah came with Nathan. Big brother by a year and a major flirt by birth.
He said he was mesmerized by my beauty when I first visited the clinic at the age of thirteen. In the next session, her Mom told me that her elder son wished to marry a girl like me, so I must not think that there was anything was wrong with me. when he was out of his senior year and decided to skip a period before joining college, he suggested we get married that year.
For a boy who took advanced classes, he was a total immature playboy. And my favorite pastime became to crack ideas on how to avoid Nathan Ross's mission when he was in town. But unrequited grudges apart, Nathan was the one popular boy in town, noted and admired for his academic nature. He was a prodigy. A computer geek and aspiring student to pursue a career in medicine, falling in his parent's footsteps.
Owing to such excellence of his he had received scholarship from some prestigious school in the city. He left, but the whole town never stopped talking about the boys extraordinary accomplishments and using him as an example to grill their children's.
It involved his younger sibling too. No one was spared.
"What has he been doing anyway?" I ask out of curiosity.
"Assisting in some medic-cal place, trying to get exp-perience blah blah s-shit in Florida" I raise my brows impressed.
"That's good isn't it?"
"N-not when your M-mom uses him as an example to make me realize that i am do_doing nothing with m-my l-life" he shakes his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts. He smiles, it doesn't reach his eyes.
He was always the depressed one in his family when it comes to skills, he thinks he is at loss. No matter how many words were sprayed towards him by his Parents, nothing worked. His disorder never failed to draw him back.
But before I could give him a pep talk the door to the cafe opened with the jiggling of the bell.
The people who entered were not expected. Tyler and Alex both scanned the room for a place to sit. Since it wasn't extremely a huge area I came into the radar quick early.
Our eyes met.
Alex didn't even bother to acknowledge my existence while Tyler's glare was enough to send anyone running toward the mill next door.
His gaze then switched to Noah, more precisely the back of his head as he sat facing me. Something seemed to spark in his eyes, something like irritation. But it was gone as soon as it came.
They sat right across us by the way where I could directly see Tyler and the back of Alex.
Tyler smirked at me as we held each other's eyes. I gave up. I was just too bothered by him than I would like to admit.
"I think we should leave," I say to Noah.
"F-fine" let me just go and pay u-up" I nod as he left. I stood up abruptly to leave.
I avoided their gaze. Both of them. I just know it by the negativity around me.
I waited outside for him to come, But he was nowhere Insight.
The door jingled once again, it was getting dark and cold. I wrapped the jacket around me and turned wishing he was finally out. But to my surprise it was Alex.
He came and stood by me.
"This fell from your jacket when you left," I noticed something in his outstretched hand. As he opened it, I gasped silently.
There In his palms glistened the hue of my Mothers necklace that I wore everywhere. The lock came out to lose this morning and I kept it in my pocket with a plan of getting it repaired today. But how could I be so careless as to almost lose my mom's last thing I had left?
I felt pathetic.
"Seems pretty important," he said eyeing me cautiously as if I'll break if his gaze was too hard.
"It's my Mother's" my voice was dry as parchment, I composed myself. He nodded in understanding.
I took it from his palms and held it tightly to my chest. Afraid it might just vanish.
It was a silver chain with a solid rectangular pendant made up of royal blue stone. Nothing creative or artistic. Just plain and beautiful. My Dad had gifted it to her, on their tenth anniversary. Since then mom and the pendant have been inseparable.
Until that day, when she clasped it around my neck with tears in her eyes. She made me promise something which I don't remember. My eleven-year-old self was too preoccupied with what was going around to focus on a mother who had already given up.
We stayed in silence. He kept looking at a distance with his hands in his pockets.
"Too stubborn aren't you" He states. To which I will my mouth to stay calm. Two weeks since he made a move to talk with me. But he wasn't discreet with the stares, bold and blunt I would find him observing or watching me.
His shoulder never tensed around anyone, not even when I would frown at him, he merely would go back to listening to the classes, or sometimes if I was lucky he would roll his eyes mildly.
"I hope your new friends are taking good care of you" It was heavy on my tongue, so I let it out despite how envious it made me look. He doesn't answer for a while. I give up expecting when-
"I am not someone who needs to be taken care of. And as for friends-" he shifts to look at me, his gaze pouring into me as he continues "-I don't need them either. But if it makes you envious. Then I think whatever I am up to is working"
It takes me a fulfilling moment to let it sink. The meaning behind. When it does, I had a hard time keeping my face straight.
He smirked, the air suddenly tight with his arrogance.
Before I could open my mouth to form a response he began to speak again. Thankfully not on the same subject.
"You have to wait a little longer for your friend, he still has to finish his Frappuccino and large fries," he says, his blue eyes boring into mine. They were like two pools of endless seas, where you could get lost, and he was so sure about it as he kept using them to toy with my rational thinking. He then turns around and walks away.
Walks away. Simply like that.
Like a person contemplating and failing miserably of what he wanted to say.
Like a person of stories.
This world is filled with so many people.
So many people, so many stories to tell.
And Noah will have an action pact narrative to report once he's out. Maybe paying bills has a different definition from his perspective.
***